Reading Autobiography Now

Sidonie Smith is Lorna G. Goodison Distinguished University Professor Emerita of English and Women’s and Gender Studies at the University of Michigan. Among her almost two dozen books are Manifesto for the Humanities and, with Julia Watson, Life Writing in the Long Run. Julia Watson is Academy Professor Emerita of Comparative Studies at The Ohio State University. She is author of numerous essays in the field and, with Sidonie Smith, coauthor of two books and coeditor of five books.

• Contents Preface Part I. Theorizing Life Narrative 1. Defining and Discerning Life Narrative Forms 2. Autobiographical Subjects 3. Autobiographical Acts 4. What about Autobiographical Truth? Part II. A Guide to Reading Life Narrative 5. Reading Life Narratives: A Tool Kit of Strategies 6. Kinds of Life Narratives: A Compendium of Key Concepts and Genres Acknowledgments Notes Bibliography Publication History Index

"This book offers a superb wayfinder through the rich and strange forest of life writing and its many forms of art. Bringing decades of wisdom as leaders in this multidisciplinary field, Sidonie Smith and Julia Watson have wonderfully updated this latest edition, with attention to multimedia and digital life narrative, nobody memoir, autographics, ecocriticism, sex and gender narrative, dementia recordings, and much more. Those with time will enjoy theoretical debates on embodiment, epistemology, experience, and identity; seekers in a hurry have mini-essays for quick marveling at autobiography now." -Margaretta Jolly, director, Centre for Life History and Life Writing Research, University of Sussex   "This third edition of the most comprehensive, provocative, and useful guide to life narratives updates its chapters on autobiography, extends its international reach, and expands its coverage of the stunning range of genres, media, and hybrid forms increasingly occupying the forefront of life-writing studies. This book is what theorists, critics, teachers, and students need now." -Craig Howes, director, Center for Biographical Research, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa   "This book is an essential tool for anyone seeking a firm grounding in this increasingly complex and expansive field, from its theoretical origins to key contemporary developments, as well as its future directions. While instructors will find this book an invaluable primer for both graduate and upper-level undergraduate students, it is also indispensable for scholars seeking a thorough yet succinct account of this unusually broad field."-CHOICE